Landing Pad for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Delivery

ABSTRACT

A landing pad receives and stores packages delivered from an aerial vehicle are awaiting pickup from an aerial vehicle. The landing pad can be placed outside of a window and can contain a transmitter for sending out an identification signal via radio frequency to aid aerial vehicles in finding the landing pad. The landing pad contains a landing platform with a trapdoor that leads to a storage compartment. The trapdoor can be configured to only open when it receives a signal from an authorized aerial vehicle. The storage compartment can be accessed via a storage compartment door which can contain a locking mechanism. The storage compartment can be climate controlled. The landing pad can also have a transmitter that emits sounds to discourage animals from nesting on or near the landing pad. The landing pad can also include a solar power generator as a source of electrical energy.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/121,174 filed on Sep. 4, 2018, entitled “Landing Pad for UnmannedAerial Vehicle Delivery”. The '174 application is a continuation of U.S.application Ser. No. 14/587,828 (now U.S. Pat. No. 10,124,912) filed onDec. 31, 2014, also entitled “Landing Pad for Unmanned Aerial VehicleDelivery” which, in turn, claims priority benefits from U.S. ProvisionalApplication Ser. No. 61/923,207 filed on Jan. 2, 2014, also entitled“Landing Pad For Receiving Packages From Unmanned Aerial Vehicles”.

The '174, '828 and '207 applications are hereby incorporated byreference herein in their entireties.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the use of a landing pad tosend/receive packages via unmanned air aerial vehicles, also frequentlyreferred to as drones. One embodiment involves mounting the device in awindow so that it can be used by those living in high-rises.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Online or remote shopping has grown immensely over the past decade andnow accounts for over 8% of items sold, with sales topping $226 billionin 2012 and expected to climb to $327 billion by 2016. Remote shoppingoffers many benefits including: allowing customers to shop fromliterally anywhere in the world; eliminating the costs associated ofhaving to ship, store, and sell items from traditional retail storelocations; and allowing manufacturers and distributors to reach a largertarget market. With the growth of Cyber Monday, the trend of increasedonline or remote shopping has increased unequivocally.

However, despite these advantages, remote shopping is not without itsdrawbacks. Most prominent among such drawbacks is the lag time betweenpurchasing an item and having it delivered. With the exception ofdigital goods that can be downloaded over the internet, most goodspurchased by remote shopping need to be delivered to the users home orbusiness. This usually takes days, if not weeks, and is subject to theintrinsic costs, hazards and obstacles of traditional parcel delivery.The variability in timeframes and distance is due to the inherentdrawbacks of the current logistics and transportation models.

Companies are attempting to minimize the delay between purchase anddelivery by offering same day delivery in certain cities. However, thiscan be very costly and inefficient as it requires a large number ofindividuals on call to go out and deliver items as they are purchased.Not only does this increase the delivery cost, but also increasestraffic congestion and carbon emissions, as there are more people outmaking deliveries.

One suggestion in improved delivery service that does not have the drawbacks of conventional same day delivery, is the use of unmanned aerialvehicles/drones. Low flying drones, such as quadcopters and octocopters,can be used to carry and deliver small to medium sized packages,directly to known locations, using global positioning system technology,telemetry, metadata and/or commands from a remote operator. Oncepurchased, these drones promise to be much more cost effective thanhuman delivery, and will likely be faster as they can bypass traffic andare not limited to following paved roads.

As consumer demand for same day delivery rises, drones will rapidlybecome a viable technology for many delivery services and companies.Companies implementing drones will reach a greater market with lessoverhead and lower costs than companies using conventional deliverymethods.

Despite its many advantages, one of the potential problems of usingdrones to deliver packages is that their use will increase packagetheft. This problem arises from the fact that drones are visible fromthe ground and typically have shorter ranges than traditional truckdelivery. Potential thieves will be able to follow drones to theirdestination and steal the package after it has been left at therecipient's doorstep.

Another problem with using drones to deliver packages arises when thedestination for the package is an area with a high density population.In an area with high-rises housing thousands of tenants and busystreets, packages simply cannot be left in front of buildings. Not onlywould this encourage theft, but it would also create a public safetyhazard as doors and streets would quickly become blocked. Currently thisproblem is dealt with by having a doorman for a building accept packagesfor the building's tenants. However, this current setup will not workwith drones, as drones are incapable of opening doors or ringing bells.

Another issue in utilizing drones for package delivery is thatobstacles, such as low hanging branches or covered porches, can make itimpractical if not impossible to deliver goods to the ground level, andwill create a myriad of variables that could lead to either moreexpensive delivery due to the increased need for sensors on the drones,or prevent certain areas from being capable of receiving deliveries.Many of these problems will not be known until the drone reaches thedelivery location, further compounding the problem.

With Amazon announcing a standardized form of drone delivery with AmazonPrimeAir, other delivery services will soon begin adopting the new formof delivery. With the ability to revolutionize the delivery service, itis imperative that the proper infrastructure is developed to ensure thesuccessful implementation of drone delivery. What is needed is a devicethat accepts packages from a drone and is secure from potential thieves.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A landing pad with a secure storage compartment or box can be used toprovide a convenient and safe place for drones to deliver and/or pick uppackages. The landing pad can be configured to fit into a standardwindow, so that it is more accessible to drones, and less accessible tothieves. The landing pad can also be configured to stand alone, eitheron a rooftop or in a field.

The drone landing pad can be secured to a standard sized window similarto an adjustable window based air conditioning unit. In someembodiments, the landing pad can have some adjustability to meet alarger variety of window sizes. The portion that faces into the buildingcan have the digital interface as well as the door to the lockablecompartment. The landing pad then protrudes from the window towards theoutside; creating a platform for the drone to land as well as to securethe package once it is delivered and/or before it is picked up.

The method in which the landing pad is mounted to the building includes,but is not limited to: brackets; adhesives; magnets; or other methods ofsecuring the landing pad to the building. With many large buildings andcondominium/apartment developments having stringent rules and codesconcerning the application of exterior hardware, the method of mountingand securing the pad to the window can have the options listed above toallow the maximum number of people to benefit from this technology.

In some embodiments the outside surface(s) of the landing pad cancontain LED or other display panel(s). This allows the landing pads todisplay information such as clocks, advertisements, and/or be decorativefeatures. In some embodiments, multiple landing pads can be placed onthe same building and networked together to create visual designs, muchlike high-rise buildings often black out certain windows to form wordsand/or designs.

Power for the landing pad can come from solar energy, battery energy,electricity from a wall outlet, or any other method of delivering energyincluding but not limited to combinations of the listed power sources.

In some embodiments, the landing pad can act as a charging station forthe air drone. Various methods for changing the drone could be usedincluding inductive charging, and/or directly allowing the drone to pluginto the landing pad. By allowing drones to charge at the landing pad,drones will be able to make longer trips and/or carry heavier loads.

In one embodiment, the landing pad contains a transmitter thattransmits, via radio frequency, a unique ID to help a drone identify it.After identifying the landing pad, the drone proceeds to the landingplatform, which extends from a window, lands and releases its package.The landing pad, receiving a signal from the drone that the package hasbeen delivered, opens a trapdoor on the landing platform so that thepackage can enter a storage compartment. In an alternative embodiment,the trapdoor is opened before the package is actually delivered, tolessen the chance that it is dislodged or removed, from the securelocation within the landing platform.

A storage door, located on the landing pad opens into the building andallows access to the storage compartment. In some embodiments, thestorage door includes a lock to lessen the chance that the package isstolen. The lock can be accessible through digital means such as passcode, pin or biometric scanning such as finger print recognition orretinal scan; or the lock can be accessible through mechanical meanssuch as a key. Opening of the secured storage compartment can occurthrough the device itself, or can be opened remotely such as through asmart phone based application that can remotely configure, secure, oropen the device.

One optional feature that can be included in the design and method ofthe device is the option to notify the recipient of the package'sarrival through the means of text message or email notification inaddition to the signal on the device itself or integrated into a homesmart system.

Another optional feature is that the landing pad can be climatecontrolled. Various elements of the storage compartment that can becontrolled include, but are not limited to, the temperature, humidity,and light settings. Traditional climate control mechanisms, includingair-conditioners, electric and gas heaters, infrared heaters,dehumidifiers and/or humidifiers can be used. In some embodimentsvarious insulating materials can be used to make the landing pad moreefficient.

In at least one embodiment, the landing pad can be configured to changethe climate of its storage box based on the item being dropped offand/or picked up. For example, in some instances if an item that shouldbe kept warm is being dropped off, such as a pizza, the landing pad canbe configured to keep the storage box warm so the item is ready when theindividual gets home. Similarly, when an item that should be kept cool,such as certain medications, is being dropped off the storage box can bekept cool. In other or the same embodiments, the storage box can receiveinformation about the item being dropped off from a variety of sourcesincluding, but not limited to, the user, a network, and/or the drone.

In some embodiments, the landing pad can be configured to adjust theclimate based on user input. For example, in one embodiment,refrigerated food can be dropped off during the morning when anindividual is at work. The landing pad, having received the food, cankeep the food refrigerated until the user gets home, or the user tellsthe landing pad, either via a physical signal and/or electrical signalthat the landing pad should heat up the food. In this way, refrigeratedfood can be delivered, stored, and cooked before the individual arriveshome.

In some embodiments the landing pad can be configured to reduce windresistance so as to prevent it from becoming detached during strongwinds. In other or the same embodiments, the landing pad can beconfigured to fold into the window when not in use to minimize windresistance.

The landing pad can be made of various materials, including but notlimited to, aluminum, stainless steel, carbon fiber, and other rustresistant materials. The interior of the storage compartment can be madeof a bacteria resistant material to prevent mold growth and to keep foodsanitary.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side view of a landing pad.

FIG. 2 is a back view of the landing pad in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is top view of the landing pad in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the landing pad in FIG. 1.

FIGS. 5A, 5B and 5C depict the stages of drone delivery.

FIGS. 6A and 6B depict the actual delivery of the package to the landingpad.

FIGS. 7A, 7B and 7C depict the use of the landing pad.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the front of a landing pad according tosome embodiments.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the back of a landing pad according tosome embodiments.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a landing pad in a window.

FIG. 11 is a top view of a landing pad according to some embodiments.

FIG. 12 is a side cutaway view of a landing pad with a conveyor belt.

FIG. 13 is a side cutaway view of another embodiment of a landing pad.

FIG. 14A is a side cutaway view of an expandable landing pad in anexpanded state.

FIG. 14B is a side cutaway view of an expandable landing pad in acontracted state.

FIG. 15 is a front perspective view of a landing pad configured to beused on a rooftop.

FIG. 16 is a back perspective view of a landing pad configured to beused on a rooftop.

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a landing pad configured to be used ina field.

FIG. 18A is a side perspective view of an expandable landing pad in anexpanded state.

FIG. 18B is a side perspective view of an expandable landing pad in asemi-contracted state.

FIG. 18C is a side perspective view of an expandable landing pad in acontracted state.

FIG. 19A is a perspective view of a landing pad that doubles as awireless charging station.

FIG. 19B is a perspective view of a landing pad that doubles as awireless charging station charging a drone.

FIG. 20A is a perspective view of a landing pad with a charging plug.

FIG. 20B is a perspective view of a landing pad with a charging plugcharging a drone.

FIG. 21A is a side cutaway view of a landing pad with a hydraulic floor.

FIG. 21B is a side cutaway view of a landing pad with a hydraulic floorin which part of the floor is in a raised position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)

FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4 illustrate various viewpoints of the same landingpad 1.

FIG. 1 is a side view of landing pad 1. Landing pad 1 is designed to beinserted into a window, much like a window air-conditioner with themajority of landing platform 2 and storage compartment 3, protruding outof the window. In this way, a drone can land on landing platform 2 anddeposit its package into storage compartment 3. A user can then retrievethe package via storage door 10 (see FIG. 2) which opens into the room.

Landing platform 2 and storage compartment 3 are supported by supportbrace 4 which can be attached to the exterior of a building. An optionaltransponder (not shown) can use radio frequency to emit a unique IDcorresponding to landing pad 1 to aid the drone, along with GPS, infinding landing pad 1. This transponder can be housed with otherelectronics in electronic housing 5.

In some embodiments, storage compartment 3 includes a conveyer belt (notshown) which move packages either towards the window (not shown) afterthey have been delivered and/or away from the window when they are beingpicked up by the drone. In some embodiments, storage compartment 3 has ahydraulic system that tilts the floor of storage compartment 3 or theentire storage compartment, to help move any packages towards and/oraway from the window.

FIG. 21A shows landing pad 1 with a hydraulic floor in a lower position.

FIG. 21B shows landing pad 1 with hydraulic floor in a raised position.

In some embodiments, storage compartment 3 can be expandable to allowfor larger packages, while decreasing wind resistance when storagecompartment 3 is not in use.

FIGS. 18A-18C show an embodiment of expandable landing pad 1 in variousstages of contraction.

FIG. 2 shows a back view of landing pad 1, as would be seen by a userinside the building. Storage door 10 opens into the room, although itcould also push into storage compartment 3, and allows for access intostorage compartment 3.

An optional lock 6 can be applied to storage door 10 for added security.Lock 6 can be mechanical, electronic or both, and can be opened by aphysical object such as a key, keycard, fingerprint (or other biometricidentifier), by supplying a secret code such as via a keypad, or voicerecognizer, or by a combination of both physical objects and secretcodes. Lock 6 is especially useful if landing pad 1 is installed in awindow facing a common room, such as a hallway or lobby in an apartment.

One can imagine floors of large skyscrapers being dedicated to dronedelivery, in which residents have personal landing pads installed.Individuals can opt for this type of setup if they do not want landingpad 1 blocking the view from their personal window, or if they live toohigh or too low in a high-rise for effective drone delivery.

FIG. 3 is a top view of landing pad 1. It illustrates trapdoor 8 onlanding platform 2 which opens into storage compartment 3 when a droneleaves a package on landing platform 1. Trapdoor 8 can be spring loadedand activated via gravity. However, this can cause problems as it couldallow animals, such as birds or squirrels to activate trapdoor 8 andfind their way into users' homes. Furthermore, lightweight packages maynot weigh enough to open trapdoor 8. Finally, if trapdoor 8 is allowedto freely swing open, thieves could easily steal from storagecompartment 3, assuming landing pad 1 can be easily accessed.

To alleviate these problems, trapdoor 8 can be configured to be openedonly via magnetic and/or mechanical means. In one embodiment, an airdrone delivering a package sends a signal to landing pad 1, that thepackage is on landing platform 2 and it is safe to open trapdoor 8. Thissignal is received by a receiver (not shown) in electronic housing 5 andtrapdoor 8 opens and then closes once the package is inside storagecompartment 3.

In some embodiments, the signals being sent between the landing pad andair drones are encrypted to prevent thieves from hacking and replicatingthem.

FIG. 3 also illustrates optional solar paneling 7. While landing pad 1can be powered via a myriad of ways, such as traditional electricalwiring running from the house or batteries, solar paneling 7 can be ahighly efficient source of power for a variety of reasons. For one,solar paneling 7 will be receiving a full day of sunlight in manysituations as it is located outside. Furthermore, landing pad 1 isdormant most of the time, except when sending out a unique ID from atransponder when an air drone is near or being engaged by the user anddoes not require a substantial amount of power.

Eliminating the need for external power allows for easier installationin areas without an electrical outlet nearby.

Landing pad 1 can also include a device in electronic housing 5 thattransmits a frequency that deters animals away from landing pad 1. Thiswould keep animals from nesting on or near landing pad 1.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of land pad 1. It shows electronic housing 5 andstorage compartment 3.

FIGS. 5A, 5B and 5C depict the steps of the drone delivery method. FIG.5A depicts drone 20 with proper data relayed or stored, departingdistribution facility 22 with package 25 (see FIG. 6A).

FIG. 5B shows that upon travel to recipients location 30, drone 20 willconduct the proper identification of landing pad 1 and, following asuccessful exchange of credentials, approaching the landing pad 1 (seeFIGS. 6A, 6B, 7A, 7B and 7C) and delivering the package. FIG. 5C showsdrone 20 traveling back to subsequent destination 40, whether that is anoriginal distribution facility 22 or another location.

FIGS. 6A and 6B depict the function of landing pad 1 upon successfulcredential transfer between drone 20 and landing pad 1 and thesubsequent approach of drone 20 to landing pad 1.

FIG. 6Aa shows drone 20 landing upon landing platform 2. Drone 20 thenreleases package 25 as shown in FIG. 6B and continues to subsequentdestination 40 (not shown). The package remains on landing platform 2until trapdoor 8 opens.

FIGS. 7A, 7B and 7C depict the steps of package 25 being left on landingplatform 2 after successful delivery from drone 20 (see FIG. 7A),package 25 entering storage compartment 3 via trapdoor 8 (see FIG. 7B),and package 25 being removed by a user via storage door 10 (see FIG.7C).

Whether notified by drone 20 or whether it senses the package viainternal sensors, landing pad 1, aware that package 25 is upon landingplatform 2, opens trapdoors 8 causing package 25 to drop into storagecompartment 3. In some embodiments, before package 25 is delivered, asignature is obtained from the addressee and/or landing pad owner. Thissignature can be obtained physically and/or electronically such as viaan email authorization. This added level of security allows for a singlelanding pad to be used by several unrelated individuals without the fearof others receiving valuable/and or personal deliveries.

FIG. 19A illustrates landing pad 1 configured to operate as a wirelesscharging station.

FIG. 19B illustrates landing pad 1 wirelessly charging a drone.

FIG. 20A illustrates landing pad 1 configured to operate as a chargingstation.

FIG. 20B illustrates landing pad 1 charging a drone.

In some embodiments, landing pad is configured to be used with anapplication that can run on, among other things, a smartphone, tablet,laptop, and/or personal computer. In some embodiments the applicationconfirms package deliveries and/or pickups. The application can alsoallow an individual to sign for deliveries and/or pickups. In someembodiments, the application also allows the user to modify varioussetting on the landing pad such as its internal climate.

In some embodiments a notification is sent to a recipient of thesuccessful delivery by means of text message, email, or notification ona smartphone application in conjunction with an LED or digital displayon landing pad 1.

FIG. 7C depicts the recipient unlocking and opening storage door 10 andremoving package 25 from the storage compartment 3.

FIG. 8 shows landing pad 1 configured to be placed in a window.

FIG. 9 illustrates, among other things, landing pad 1 with sound emitter50 and transmitter 60.

FIG. 12 illustrates, among other things, landing pad 1 with conveyerbelt 70 and climate control mechanism 80.

While particular elements, embodiments and applications of the presentinvention have been shown and described, it will be understood, that theinvention is not limited thereto since modifications can be made withoutdeparting from the scope of the present disclosure, particularly inlight of the foregoing teachings.

What is claimed is:
 1. A landing pad comprising: (a) a landing platform,wherein said landing pad acts as a charging station for an air drone. 2.The landing pad of claim 1 further comprising: (b) a receptacle for saidair drone to plug into said landing pad for charging said air drone. 3.The landing pad of claim 1 wherein said charging station charges saidair drone via inductive charging.
 4. The landing pad of claim 1 whereinsaid landing pad is configured to be placed in a window.
 5. The landingpad of claim 1 further comprising: (b) a sound emitter capable ofdeterring animals.
 6. The landing pad of claim 1 further comprising: (b)a transmitter that transmits a unique ID associate with said landingpad.
 7. A method of directing an air drone to a landing pad wherein saidlanding pad acts as a charging station for said air drone.
 8. The methodof claim 7 wherein said method comprises said air drone plugging into areceptacle of said landing pad to charge said air drone.
 9. The methodof claim 7 wherein said charging station charges said air drone viainductive charging.
 10. The method of claim 7 wherein said methodcomprises: extending said landing pad from a window.
 11. The method ofclaim 10 wherein said method comprises folding said landing pad intosaid window when said landing pad is not interacting with said airdrone.
 12. The method of claim 7 wherein said method comprises:providing said landing pad with a unique landing pad ID.
 13. The methodof claim 7 wherein said method comprises: employing a global positioningsystem device to navigate said air drone to said landing pad.
 14. Themethod of claim 10 wherein said method comprises emitting a sound from asound emitter to deter animals.
 15. A system comprising: (a) a landingpad; and (b) an application wherein said application confirms a deliveryof a package to said landing pad.
 16. The system of claim 15 whereinsaid application runs on a smartphone.
 17. The system of claim 15wherein said application runs on a tablet.
 18. The system of claim 15wherein said application modifies a setting on said landing pad.
 19. Thesystem of claim 18 wherein said setting adjusting a plurality of climatecontrol mechanisms of a storage compartment.
 20. The system of claim 15wherein said application sends a confirmation to a third party when adrone delivers said package to said landing pad, wherein saidconfirmation is an email.